The Raid Redemption (Review)

The Raid: Redemption

The Raid: Redemption (2012)

Directed by Gareth Evans

After seeing The Raid, I tweeted this:

@TheRaidUS is the equivalent of seeing a 100 car pile up, head on collisions and fiery mushroom cloud explosions. It's fuckin awesome

It's rare to see an action movie that says, fuck the characters and the plot! We're not going to waste time developing our characters or explaining the plot. Instead, we're going to give you non stop action for well over 100 minutes and it's going to be some of the most insane stuff you have seen in a while.

Remember when you first mesmerized by Tony Jaa in Ong Bak? Well The Raid is Ong Bak on fuckin steroids and fully armed with nuclear explosives. It's bar none the best action movie I've seen in the past decade.

Boring Plot-O-Matic

The plot is simple. SWAT Team are told they have to take out a ruthless crime lord in an old tenement building. The building is heavily guarded by 1-800 Henchmen and house lowlifes, thugs, addicts and pieces of shit. It also has a few good Samaritans who our remaining cops will meet later. All you need to know is humans with lady parts are at a minimum. You're going to see glorious violence in a Just Dance choreography that is pure awesomeness.

Awesome Review-O-Matic

I said it would revolutionize the action movie and I wasn't wrong. You may not know the name Iko Uwais but you will after seeing The Raid. Move over Tony Jaa, your 15 minutes are up. I first saw Uwais in Merantau, Gareth Evans first flick featuring Silat Harimau the Indonesian martial art. I'll admit, it had some stellar action scenes but it was full of boring drab plot and story and had staged action scenes that seem to appear out of nowhere.

But The Raid is floor after floor of non stop Silat in closed quarters, rooms with many breakable objects and ferocity of throwing your enemy against the wall numerous times. Uwais is a skilled tactician playing our hero cop and the synchronized ballet of Silat on Silat violence via endless henchmen are a sight you won't fuckin forget.

The man who steals the show however is Yayan Ruhian who plays Mad Dog. Dude is like the Nate Robinson of the film. He's barely 5'8 from the looks of it but his Silat skills are fuckin stellar. In the penultimate scene, he battles Uwais and his "partner" in well over 15 minutes display of kicks, blocks, punches, blocks and gallery of lightning quick Silat-o-pedia of moves.

And don't get me started by the point blank violence. Holy fuckin shit. Here are things I've never seen before:

• Execution of 4 men via point blank gunshots to the head (and one via hammer)
• Silat battle ending in multiple gunshots to the face
• Machete wielding fight scene
• Rude Awakening neck breakers

I mean check this scene out.

This is a badass flick that destroys all semblance of what action porn should be. It defies the genre by be unrelenting and ferocious. It doesn't apologize, it says FUCK YOU and gives you more of what you want. It has moments of pure suspense and anxiety then delivers one screaming kick after the other.

The Raid Redemption is the one action movie you need to see this year. Gone is Thai action. Indonesia is the king of action and Gareth Evans and Iko Uwais are sitting on the throne.

Nude-ipedia

Puhlease.

Gore-ipedia

Mucho gun trauma
Mucho broken bones trauma
Mucho head, arms, legs trauma

WTF moment

Uwais takes on EVERYBODY!!!!

The Jaded Viewer's Final Prognosis

The Raid is out now in limited theaters. It's a must see, no ifs or ands about it. It's the pinnacle of the modern day action flick. It's why it's getting a release here. The Raid may have been overshadowed by that movie with kids killing kids, but leave it up to the adults to give us grown up violence.

Rating:


Check out the trailer.

Categories: action cinema, bloody violence, crime thriller, gore, guns, indonesia action movie, kung fu, martial arts, merantau, merantau trailer, splatter, the raid redemption

Assassination Games (Review)

Assassination Games

Assassination Game (2011)

Directed by Ernie Barbarash

With the hype that Jean Claude Van Damme has received with being cast as a villain in The Expendables 2, one wondered why it took so long for JCVD to make the decision to join the all star cast. Was it because he didn't want to do action porn? Was he so adamant that the movie be "character action" as he always points out? Did he NOT want to play the villain?

Well I don't think the villain is the problem. Because after watching Assassination Games (formerly Weapon) there is a bit of grey in his character of Vincent. Van Damme plays an elite assassin who seems to be a cold blooded, ruthless uncaring SOB. But with any other JCVD flick, his character evolves and picks the good guy side. This side is includes ultimate good guy played by Scott Adkins as Flint and without a doubt adds the SUPER POW! to JCVD's POW. Now starring in his 3rd Van Damme flick, he kicks ass and is rightly in The Expendables 2 as well.

Assassination Games is a solid Van Damme flick that blends in a bit of The Professional with that Stallone/Banderas clunker Assassins. Think of Van Damme as Leon teamed up with Adkins playing the stereotypical Statham character. It's an awesome team up, one where the world's best assassins face off then in typical movie form team up to kill the Big Bad.

Van Damme is respectively solid and the action scenes are executed with precision. Without carrying the entire movie on his shoulders, Van Damme seems to play well with others adding a buddy cop like feel to the flick. Sure the bad guy, subplots and shoot em ups could have been better but Assassination Games plays out like a stealthy Max Payne FPS that makes me proud to be a Van Damme fan.

Boring Plot-O-Matic

Brazil (Jean-Claude Van Damme) is a contract killer, willing to take any job if the price is right. Flint (Scott Adkins) left the assassin game when a ruthless drug dealer’s brutal attack left his wife in a coma. When a contract is put out on the same coldblooded drug dealer, both Brazil and Flint want him dead – one for the money, the other for revenge. With crooked Interpol agents and vicious members of the criminal underworld hot on their trail, these two assassins reluctantly join forces to quickly take out their target before they themselves are terminated.

Awesome Review-O-Matic

After watching a bit of Van Damme's reality show, I saw a few scenes of this film being shot. What you'll notice first is that with every Van Damme flick, he still strives to make the best quality action movie in the business. Bulgaria is the setting of choice and Van Damme's kids get juicy parts. Kris Van Varenberg shows up playing a corrupt Interpol agent while Bianca Van Varenberg plays a comatose wife of Flint.

AG establishes itself with a stealthy opening as Van Damme performs a hit. Juxtaposed is Flint, a now retired assassin who cares for his wife who brutally attacked by what I believe is an evil weapons dealer Polo. Soon Polo has a price on his head and both JCVD and Adkins get in each other's way. There's a subplot involving Flint's former partner and Van Damme meets a hooker who tries to break the stone cold Vincent. None of this is oddly necessary, but it wasn't boring either.

Vincent is a prototypical assassin as we find out. An apartment that's not as it seems, he plays the violin, gets paid only in diamonds and has a pet turtle. We don't get a clear idea why Vincent is like this but I liked the mystery. Director Ernie Barbarash could have put in flashbacks, thank the action gods he didn't. Flint does get a flashback. Seems Polo gangraped his wife and put her in a coma?!? (hmm I have no idea how that could have happeped). Now he wants bloody revenge and Polo's bollocks.

The action scenes are actually super gory. Lots of sliced throats and ears. Gun shots galore are littered throughout AG. Sliced up bodies, gun shot riddled corpses and Adkins provides the spinkicks and out of nowhere punches. Also littered are lots of conversations with double talk, schemes and backstabbing. As we headed to the final confrontation, I was expecting a level of shit just hit the fan but what I got was more straightforward, budget constrained vengeance.

Sure it's another lone hitman movie, the generic action flicks that Jason Statham and his Transporter/Crank/The Mechanic/Killer Elite fold of movies we all love. But this one has Van Damme and it has Adkins and somehow it held my interest for the entire duration. Sure the bad guy and his goons were just assassination fodder, the killing of innocents for motivation and the quick witted banter between the 2 stars was a bit funny. But I like to think of this as a webisode of The Expendables 2. It's just a taste of what TWO FUCKIN HUGE ACTION STARS together can get done.

Now cue this motherfuckin song.

Nude-ipedia

Some Eastern European hooker boobies

Gore-ipedia

Like I said, some sliced throats, ear decaps and gunshots galore

WTF moment

High tech wizardry helps kick ass

The Jaded Viewer's Final Prognosis

Assassination Games is now out on DVD, on Video in Demand and is also on iTunes. The DVD includes Deleted Scenes and commentary with Van Damme and Adkins. Scott Adkins fans are like early JCVD fans. Sometimes you HAVE to watch everything he's in because it's just fuckin mandatory. Van Damme fans, you won't be disappointed. Assassination Games is better than his previous action efforts.

The Vitals

• The official site
• Facebook Page

Rating:
1/2

Check out the trailer.

Categories: action cinema, assassins, bloody violence, character action, extreme violence, guns, JCVD, Jean Claude Van Damme, scott adkins, the expendables, van damme

Uwe Boll Rampage (Trailer)

OK don't all hate me at once. But I'll admit, I thought Postal wasn't half bad. I know it's the "cool" thing to hate on the Uwe Boll. And indeed, all his movies based on video games sucked like a newborn on her mommy's boobies. But before I bash the German goremeister, I have made it a point to actually see the flick before I trash it.

And I've seen House of the Dead, Alone in the Dark, Bloodrayne and Dungeon Seed (and yes they all have sucked). I haven't seen Tunnel Rats, Far Cry and Stoic as of yet. Just because everybody says it sucks doesn't mean I'm joining the damn bandwagon. I'm going to be the fuckin triangle in the square hole and think otherwise.

So after watching the trailer for Rampage, it actually looks pretty fucked up (like happy good fucked up). It actually reminded me of a movie by Boll's special effects master Olaf Ittenbach called Poison (watch the trailer here)

Here be the plot.

A man with a thirst for revenge builds a full body armor from Kevlar and goes on a killing spree.

Check out the trailer below. Rampage will premiere at the Fantasic Fest in Texas.





Thanks to Arrow in the Head and Fangoria for the heads up.

Categories: 2009 fantastic fest, guns, postal, rampage, rampage trailer, shooting massacres, stop uwe boll, uwe boll

The Eagle Path (Full Extended Trailer)

A new extended trailer has been released for The Eagle Path, the new character action movie from the muscles from Brussels, Jean Claude Van Damme.

We still have no fuckin idea when this is going to get released but I love how the new trailer sums up the plot to obliterate people so that he can rescue a women (who I think is a hooker).

He then recruits a bunch of his buddies to help him.

Hmm, maybe this is why Jean Claude turned down The Expendables. Maybe this movie is like Stallone's. But whereas The Expendables is testosterone, roided up action porn, JCVD's looks to be the Skinemax equivelant.

If you forgot the plot, see below.

A military veteran and former mercenary, Frenchy (Van Damme) works as a taxi driver, hiding somewhere in East Asia, haunted by his past. After his driving shifts he often frequents the Eagle's Nest, a seedy bar that houses a caged eagle. In the midst of the chaotic Asian traffic Frenchy picks up a beautiful female passenger who will change him forever.

Driven by dark memories of his childhood, he becomes determined to improve her life and, without her approval, he embarks on a journey which proves to be more dangerous and complicated then he expected. After encountering a series of harrowing obstacles he calls in favors from his special ops friends who immediately join him. His military team engages in the biggest fight of their lives. War is hell, but nothing they've done could have prepared them for this.

It’s an adrenaline-fueled, full-on, maximum firepower thriller, filled with the intense psychological conflict that Van Damme fans love the world over.

Check out the new, longer full extended trailer below.

Categories: action cinema, bloodsport, character action, guns, JCVD, Jean Claude Van Damme, the eagle path, the eagle path teaser trailer, the eagle path trailer, van damme

The Eagle Path (Teaser Trailer)

It's always a big event here at the jaded viewer when a new Jean Claude Van Damme movie looms over the horizon. JCVD is back in The Eagle Path, a movie he wrote, edited and directed.

I mean look at that fuckin poster! He's holding a damn hand cannon.

And the freakin tagline is: Haunted By The Past, His Vengeance Knows No Limits.

OH FUCKIN YEAH HIS VENGEANCE KNOWS NO FUCKIN LIMITS!!!!

He's Jean Claude Van Damme!

Trailer looks pretty "character action" oriented. Just the way JCVD likes it. Lots of car chases, double fisting Woo-ish gun battles and a freakin eagle.

What's not to like?

Check out the plot.

A military veteran and former mercenary, Frenchy (Van Damme) works as a taxi driver, hiding somewhere in East Asia, haunted by his past. After his driving shifts he often frequents the Eagle's Nest, a seedy bar that houses a caged eagle. In the midst of the chaotic Asian traffic Frenchy picks up a beautiful female passenger who will change him forever.

Driven by dark memories of his childhood, he becomes determined to improve her life and, without her approval, he embarks on a journey which proves to be more dangerous and complicated then he expected. After encountering a series of harrowing obstacles he calls in favors from his special ops friends who immediately join him. His military team engages in the biggest fight of their lives. War is hell, but nothing they've done could have prepared them for this.

It’s an adrenaline-fueled, full-on, maximum firepower thriller, filled with the intense psychological conflict that Van Damme fans love the world over.

The Eagle Path will be premiering at Cannes and TIFF this summer.

Check out the trailer below. Thanks to Twitch for the heads up.





Check out this site for more information.

Categories: action cinema, bloodsport, character action, guns, JCVD, Jean Claude Van Damme, the eagle path, the eagle path teaser trailer, the eagle path trailer, van damme

Gallowwalker (Trailer)

Gallowwalker is speculated to be Wesley Snipes return to a theatrical release-hood. So if Snipes can do it, why can't JCVD?

I mean Snipes was indicted for tax invasion and he gets the Hollywood greenlight? Has JCVD ever been arrested for a crime? (Oh yeah.... drugs, girl trouble and he got sued by the real Frank Dux)

Well I gotta admit, Gallowwalker looks Paul W.S. Anderson-ish and has a slight video gamey effect but the premise has got me stoked.

A gunman knows too well the ways of vengeance. Fast and furious, he has killed every man who crossed him. But his gift with a gun comes with a curse. All those who die by his hand will return. Enter the world of gallowwalker, where vengeance lives forever.

Live by the gun. Die by the gun. Come back for more...

Western zombie gun slinging goodness or straight to DVD Uwe Boll garbage?

You decide. Check out the trailer below.





Tags:
gallowwalker trailer, gallowwalker , western+horror , wesley snipes, gunslinging, cowboys, zombies, jcvd,top horror movies of 2009,ddp

Categories: gallowwalker, gallowwalker trailer, guns, JCVD, wesley snipes, western zombie horror

Tyrese Gibson: A Jaded Viewer True Hollywood Story

I asked Insano Steve for a review of The Take. After a few weeks of prodding, he said he couldn't write a review that was potently funny or ridiculously entertaining. (I find this hard to believe as The Take seems ripe with some MST3K quips ready to be made). Instead he decided a Tyrese retrospective would be a better fit.

So here is Insano Steve's retrospective.

Tyrese Gibson: A Jaded Viewer True Hollywood Story

By Insano Steve

If somebody asked me "Who is your favorite actor?", I don't think I would have an answer.
But if somebody asked "Who is your favorite BLACK actor?", my answer would be easy, Tyrese.

Tyrese is famous for his Coke commercial where he starts spontaneously singing in the back of a bus. He's also a model and has a semi-successful R&B singing career.

But what I'm sure he is most proud of, is his acting career. Tyrese can be found starring and co-starring in such fine films as Baby Boy, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Four Brothers, Annapolis, Waist Deep, Transformers, and his latest film, The Take. Before I review The Take, let's answer some important questions about Tyrese and his films first:

1) Q: Is Tyrese a good actor?

A: Oh God no. He pretty much plays the same character in all his films.

2) Q: Is Tyrese a good black actor?

A: Hells yeah. I guess here's the distinction. Sure, I don't think Tyrese is an Oscar winning actor like Denzel Washington or Morgan Freeman or DMX, but Tyrese's movies are always great fun. When you see Tyrese on the screen, you know somebody is about to get shot. And that's how you should feel in any good black movie.

3) Q: Wait a minute, Tyrese is a model and sings really gay love songs, how come he plays thugs in all his movies?

A: That's kind of the beauty of it. Knowing his background, you pretty much know that his roles are not authentic and/or "keeping it real". Therefore when he shoots some poor bastard, it's just that much more funny. It's like watching Wayne Brady as a criminal in 'Crossover'.

4) Q: I heard Tyrese shoots a gun in every movie he's in, that can't be true right?

A: Yeah, that's pretty much right. That's his claim of distinction. These days, a good black movie is really hard to come by. Instead we have Tyler Perry bullshit or another Ice Cube family comedy.

Seriously, what the fuck?

Things were so much better when movies were just about crime and poverty. And the soundtrack badly outsold the movie. Well, there's still hope, because Tyrese is still out there shooting people.

5) Q: C'mon, no way, every movie?

A: Well, let's look at this on an itemized film by film basis via imdb.com:

Luke Cage (2009)

This movie hasn't been made but I'll just guess yes. Hopefully this movie won't make Tyrese a star and cause him to sellout to roles in non-black movies.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)

Those fucking robots ain't gonna shoot themselves

Legion (2009)

Post-apocalyptic movie. Bet on Tyrese finding the last remaining hand gun.

Death Race (2008)

He plays the role of 'Machine Gun Joe'. What do you think?

The Take (2007)

Several times, at close range, in John Leguizamo's head.

Transformers (2007)

Easily the biggest movie Tyrese has been in. You probably wouldn't notice he's in it though with all that transforming going on. He plays the black guy that keep's shooting people and robots.

Waist Deep (2006)

His 2nd greatest role. His character, O2, defies police, gangs, the Game, and logic to rob banks and flee to Mexico with hotness that is Meagan Good. Oh yeah, he's forced to rob banks cause the Game kidnapped his kid. He'd never rob banks otherwise. The legendary O-Dog from 'Menace to Society' in this. Oh yeah, he shoots people in this, many of whom die.

Annapolis (2006)

I never actually saw this. The trailer about a bunch a dudes in the Navy training camp just seemed a little gay. Harry Osbourne from the Spiderman movies stars in this. Tyrese plays his commanding officer, and pretty much hazes the shit out of him. Very likely, a gun is fired along the way.

Four Brothers (2005)

Here he plays one of the two black brothers. This movie is on TNT a lot but I always miss the ending. It's kinda stupid with Marky Mark and Andree 3000 and some other white guy playing his brothers. Alas, he does shoot people.

Flight of the Phoenix (2004)

Also never seen. Only black actor in the movie, so it sounds promising.

2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)

2 Black 2 Furious! Lots of shooting and fancy driving in this. One of his less 'black' roles though.

Baby Boy (2001)

His greatest work. He plays Jody and he pretty much is a good for nothing thug with 2 baby mamas, no job, no car, and his mom's wants him out of the house. Marsellus Wallace teaches him some sense by throwing him through a glass coffee table. Cuba Gooding's brother in this movie and is awesome as the hopeless thug, Sweetpea. Snoop Dogg in this too, wearing the baggiest wife-beater ever put on film.

Without a doubt, the best black movie in the last 10 years. Tupac was supposed to star in this originally. Tyrese kills it in this movie (figuratively and otherwise). Movie caused me to Google chickenhead and hoodrat. Who knew there was such a subtle difference between them?

"Moesha" (2000) ... Troy

Seriously doubt he shot anybody on an episode of Moesha

Love Song (2000) (TV) ... Mad Rage/Skip

Huh, what is this?

"All That" (2000) .... Musical Guest

Hmmm, I wonder if he shot anybody as a Musical Guest

"The Parent 'Hood" (1998) .... Thug

His character is named Thug !?!?

"Martin" (1997) .... Dante

Shit, peoples was always getting shot on Martin

"Hangin' with Mr. Cooper" (1996) .... Darrell

Didn't see this episode, and Tyrese was only 15 at the time, but I'll assume 'Darrell' busts some shots off in Coop's class

6) Q: Dude, those movies all suck balls, why you like this guy?

A: Fuck you then. Make your own fucking list and I can trash that list.

7) Q: Yo, weren't you supposed to review 'The Take'?

A: Oh shit, yeah, that's right, ......

See Tyrese at his best in Waist Deep and Baby Boy.

Waist Deep Trailer

Baby Boy Trailer

Tags:
tyrese, tyrese gibson , tyrese retrospective , black movies, gangsta movies, tyrese shooting guns, waist deep, horror blog, shawn of the dead, baby boy, tyrese pictures, thug gangsta hood movies,

Categories: baby boy, black movies, gangsta movies, guns, the take, tyrese, tyrese gibson, tyrese retrospective, waist deep

Rewind: Ms. 45

Before there was Death Sentence or the soon to be released The Brave One, there was one vigilante movie that broke the mold. Straight out of NYC's grindhouse reels was Ms. 45.

Abel Ferrara's rape-revenge masterpiece is classic 70's grindhouse at its best.

Plagiarizing from the IMDB plot summary:

Plot:

A mute woman gets raped twice coming home from work and decides to take matters into her own hands. She dresses suggestively and roams the streets alone, reaking vengeance upon anyone who tries to take advantage of her. Eventually her secret life spills over into her regular life in the fashion industry.

Trailer:



Rewind the Insanity:

This movie is such great fun. Ferrara made this movie after Driller Killer (his NYC slasher killer masterpiece) and he goes into Repulsion, Last House on the Left (1972) and I Spit on Your Grave (aka Day of the Women) (1978) territory. Made in 1981, its full of vague vignettes and gritty NYC dialect conversation. Hoodlums, thugs, lowlives, pimps and degenerates. You gotta love NYC back in the late 70's early 80's. You get the feel for the times and the utter piece of shit decay of Gotham.

It's as fucked up as advertised. She does get raped....twice. Our killer protagonist Thana (played by the sexy Zoe Lund) kills her second attacker and grabs his gun and then she starts to go all Charles Bronson. Never has seeing a sexy fashionista mute woman holding a hand cannon look so good.

The ending is completely nuts and should be viewed multiple times. Decapitated head and all.

The Ending:

Rating:

Tags:
ms 45, abel ferrara , grindhouse , rape, the brave one ,death sentence, zoe lund

Categories: abel ferrara, death sentence, grindhouse, guns, ms. 45, nyc movie, rape, the brave one, vigilante, zoe lund